GREENCASTLE, Ind. — The Putnamville Correctional Facility near Greencastle has been honored as “Organization of the year” by an environmental organization for recycling 10 tons a month of cans, bottles, paper, plastic wrappers and other material.

The Hoosier Environmental Council said Putnamville has gone the extra mile to be green with energy-saving innovations.

“They are a leader in the country among prisons or any government facilities for that matter, in their environmental consciousness and commitment to sustainability,” said Jesse Kharbanda, director of the nonprofit council.

The prison’s windmill generates enough power for one large building, while its wood chipper fuels a wood-burning furnace, and a water conservation system saves more than one million gallons a day. Additionally, the prison plans to grow cabbage, tomatoes, peppers and beans in a garden fertilized with the nitrogen-rich compost with manure from the prison's 45 horses cared for by inmates. The food will be donated to organizations that feed the homeless and needy.